‘Beverly Hills Cop’ for TV? Eddie Murphy Says Yes, But …

Eddie Murphy told Rolling Stone he’s working to resurrect Beverly Hills Cop as a television show, with the Axel Foley character serving as chief of police back in Detroit, while his son handles the hilarious high jinks on the Beverly Hills police force. Murphy said he would not star in the show, but he’d be happy to make a couple of cameos along the way.

“None of the movie scripts were right; it was trying to force the premise,” says Murphy, referring to the rumor that Beverly Hills Cop IV, the film, was still a possibility. “If you have to force something, you shouldn’t be doing it. It was always a rehash of the old thing. It was always wrong.”

Murphy also said his days of making family movies may be over.

“I don’t have any interest in that right now,” he said. “There’s really no blueprint, but I’m trying to do some edgy stuff. And I only want to do what I really want to do, otherwise I’m content to sit here and play my guitar all day. I always tell people now that I’m a semiretired gentleman of leisure, and occasionally I’ll go do some work to break the boredom up.”

Eddie must not have been too bored of late, since his latest film, Tower Heist, an action-comedy from Brett Ratner, co-starring Ben Stiller, is due to hit theaters soon. Alan Alda, Matthew Broderick, Casey Affleck, Téa Leoni and Gabourey Sidibe are also in the film.

Regarding the word around Hollywood that Murphy has become a recluse, he explains, “I’m not at all the Hollywood parties. I’m grown, and where else am I supposed to be? I’m supposed to be home… If I were out in the clubs every night, they’d be saying, ‘That’s a shame, look at him, 50 years old, he’s still out at these clubs.’ Recluses are nasty, with long nails, don’t wash their ass… I’m too vain to be a recluse. But homebody, absolutely. I’m 50 years old, beautiful house, I’m supposed to be home, chilling.”